Ed Ruth has received a new opponent for his next fight under the Bellator MMA banner. This move comes with less than two weeks to go, which is not necessarily ideal for a fighter.
Ruth is was originally slated to drop down to welterweight and fight Laszlo Furko at the upcoming Bellator 196 event.
The promotion confirmed to MMAJunkie on Monday afternoon that Ruth is slated to fight promotional newcomer Ion Pascu in a 175-pound catchweight contest. With this fight being announced, it has completed the main card.
Pascu is coming into this fight after being a veteran of the European MMA scene. He has won eight of his past 10 fights dating back to August 2014.
Ruth, who is a three-time NCAA collegiate wrestling champion, fought at a 192-pound catchweight bout for his first MMA bout then went to the middleweight division.
Now, he believes it’s the right time to test his luck at a new weight class. He has won all four of his fights by TKO with the most recent fight coming by second-round against UFC veteran Chris Dempsey at Bellator 186 in November.
Bellator 196 is set to take place on Friday, April 6, 2018, in Budapest, Hungary at the Budapest Sports Arena. The preliminary card will air online at 7:00 pm EST while the main card will air on Paramount Network at 9:00 PM EST.
Benson Henderson vs. Roger Huerta in a lightweight bout will serve as the main event while Adam Borics vs. Manuel Gaxhja in a featherweight bout will serve as the co-main event.
Rounding out the five bout main card is Denise Kielholtz vs. Lena Ovchynnikova in a women’s flyweight bout, Giorgio Belsanti vs. Brian Moore in a featherweight bout, and Ion Pascu vs. Ed Ruth in a catchweight bout.
MAIN CARD (Paramount Network/9 p.m. ET)
Lightweight: Benson Henderson vs. Roger Huerta
Featherweight: Adam Borics vs. Manuel Gaxhja
Women’s Flyweight: Denise Kielholtz vs. Lena Ovchynnikova
Featherweight: Giorgio Belsanti vs. Brian Moore
Catchweight: Laszlo Furko vs. Ed Ruth
PRELIMINARY CARD (Online/7 p.m. ET)
Norbert Novenyi Jr. vs. Mehmet Yueksel
What are your thoughts on Ruth accepting this fight on such short notice? Sound off in the comment section below.
